How accessing batches works at Instacart
Tips to help you find work, when and where you want
Know what to expect when you’re online
When you go online, the Shopper app can help you understand your likelihood of seeing batches. To help you get a batch faster, the app shows busy stores indicated by the color around the store. Red is the busiest, followed by orange.
Shoppers closer to a store are more likely to see batches before shoppers who are farther away. When you get close enough to a store, a highlighted area will appear, maximizing your likelihood of seeing that store’s batches.
You can get greater access to batches by qualifying for Cart Star to unlock priority access. In the highlighted area, available batches are shown first to Diamond Cart (and new shoppers on the first 10 batches), then Platinum Cart, Gold Cart, and finally shoppers not in Cart Star. When you are farther away from the store, higher Cart Star priority access means a greater likelihood of seeing available batches.
Tip for shoppers:
See which days and hours pay more per batch using peak earning times.* Keep an eye on areas with high shopper demand so you can plan your day. Learn more about how earning with Instacart works.
*Peak earning times is not available in all areas including California; Ontario, Canada; British Columbia, Canada; and Seattle, Washington. Check your app to confirm availability.
Batch access summary
Here are the 3 key areas that impact your access to batches when you’re online:
Device
Make sure you have a strong GPS signal and good internet connection for the Shopper app to work properly.
Location
Know the level of demand for shoppers in your area to help you understand if you’re likely to see a batch.
You can increase your chances of getting a batch more quickly by locating and moving toward busy stores.
Account
Tier-based priority access to batches is available to Cart Star shoppers who maintain the minimum shopping quality score and a 4.7 or above customer rating.
With priority access, shoppers inside the store’s highlighted area see available batches based on tier—first to Diamond Cart (and new shoppers on the first 10 batches), then Platinum Cart, Gold Cart, and finally shoppers not in Cart Star.
Batch types that can be available to you
Up to four customer orders may be included
When a batch becomes available to you, you will see it appear on your batch list and can include a combination of shop and deliver, shop-only, and deliver-only orders.
You can see the number of stores and customer deliveries on your batch acceptance screen. As always, you can view batch details before accepting and are never penalized for not accepting.
Shop and deliver
A batch where you shop the items at the store and deliver the customer's order to their location.
Shop-only
A batch where you only shop the items at the store.
Deliver-only
A batch where you pick up the customer’s order from the store and deliver to their location.
More ways to customize your work:
The option to add on an order or add a batch to queue may be available to you at times, to help you stay busy. If you don't want a batch that is available to you, you can choose to hide it.
Add to current batch
If a new customer places an order, you may have the option to accept adding their order to your current batch.
Add to queue
This option allows you to queue a new batch to shop after you have finished your current one and is available at times depending on the location of your current delivery.
Hide batches
If you don’t want to accept a batch, you can hide it by swiping it to the left. You can always come back to hidden batches to re-evaluate.
Frequently asked questions
How close do I need to be to the store?
Batches from a store are made available to shoppers based on their proximity to the store. The closer you are to a store, the more likely you are to see a batch from that store. You’re close enough to a store when a highlighted area appears around the store.
Once you’re inside the highlighted area, there is no benefit to getting closer to the store. All shoppers in the highlighted area have maximized their likelihood of seeing batches from that store before shoppers outside of the highlighted area. Shoppers with Cart Star priority access will see batches within a store’s highlighted area by tier--first to Diamond Cart, then Platinum Cart, followed by Gold Cart shoppers.
How are new shoppers affected by Cart Star priority access?
To help new shoppers get started and learn how the Shopper app works, they are given the highest level of Cart Star priority access on their first 10 batches. New shoppers complete about 5% of batches delivered.
Why might I see different batches than another nearby shopper?
There are several factors that impact how batches become available to shoppers:
Shoppers with a higher Cart Star status maintaining their tier’s minimum shopping quality score and 4.7 or above rating are more likely to see batches before shoppers with a lower Cart Star status or shoppers not in Cart Star.
Shoppers who are closer to a store are more likely to see batches before shoppers who are further away.
Shoppers with Cart Star priority access within a store’s highlighted area will see batches first from that store based on their tier level.
For shoppers who are outside a store’s highlighted area, when other stats like distance to store and shopping quality are equal between shoppers, shopping efficiency can be used to determine who sees an available batch.
Batches that include alcohol, prescriptions, bulky items, or 50+ lbs of heavy items (items weighing 8+ lbs) are only available to shoppers who are certified for or have opted into these deliveries. Batches from stores that require an active physical payment card at checkout are only available to shoppers who have activated their physical payment card. Shoppers with verified cooler bags are more likely to see batches containing frozen items.
These factors are used to surface batches to a few shoppers at a time and if a batch is not accepted, we will make the batch available to additional shoppers.
Why do I see batches that are so far from me?
Shoppers who are close to a store are most likely to see available batches before shoppers who are far away. However, if there are no shoppers near the store, we will offer the batch to shoppers who are farther away. We take into account the expected distance the shopper has to drive to the store once they accept a batch.
How can I maximize my access to batches?
You can maximize your likelihood of seeing available batches by qualifying for Cart Star tier-based priority access and being in a store’s highlighted area. You can also access more batches by completing certifications or opting in to be eligible for bulky item, alcohol, prescription, and heavy batch deliveries. Additionally, have an active physical payment card as some stores require one at checkout. Tap the Account tab at the bottom of the app, select “Batch eligibility” to see which steps you can take to access more batches.
What do I do if my device has no internet connection or poor GPS signal?
The Device tab of the batch access summary page informs you of internet connection and GPS signal issues that can impact your access to batches. If you are struggling to get cellular signal in a store, check to see if the store offers free wifi. You will be unable to get batches until your internet connection is restored. If your internet or GPS signal are weak, you will need to move to an area with better signal.
How are ratings distributed on shop-only or deliver-only batches?
If the batch was a shop-only or a deliver-only batch, how the rating is applied depends on the rating the customer gave:
5-star rating: Both the shopper who shopped the order in store and the shopper who delivered the order will receive a 5-star rating
Rating under 5 stars: The rating is applied based on customer feedback about the 1-4 star rating. We will use the feedback to apply the rating to the relevant shopper. For example, if the feedback was about a poor replacement, the rating would be applied to the shopper who shopped the order, not the shopper who delivered it. If the customer doesn’t provide any feedback with the rating, the rating won’t be applied to either shopper.
How does Instacart estimate time to get a batch when you arrive at the store or store busyness?
Estimated time to get a batch and busy stores you see are personalized based on aspects of your shopper profile and demand at stores nearby. This means the recommendations in your app are specific to you and may be different for other shoppers. Estimates take effect once inside a highlighted area, and at least 85% of shoppers that move there get batches from a nearby store in this time. To maintain an accurate experience, estimates are refreshed frequently and updated as demand changes.
What should I do if demand in my area is very low?
You can use the peak earning times page to keep an eye on which days and hours are projected to have high shopper demand so you can plan your shopping in advance.